Review Summary: umm, yeah i guess. hmmm.
Since J Mascis and Lou Barlow buried the hatchet five years ago, Dinosaur Jr. has certainly traveled around with the occasional nostalgia tour. Last year they took “Bug” around the world in tour form. But unlike most other big bands that reigned supreme just before the grunge era, Dinosaur Jr. has actually managed the feat to give out some of their strongest records after their reunion. The question is how long this surprisingly persistent renaissance will last?
I Bet on Sky begins, as a regular Dinosaur Jr. Album , loud and fuzzy with “Do not Pretend You Did not Know” and “Watch the Corners” but feels as a whole slightly more tired than both “Beyond” and “Farm”. With this said not a single song feels rushed or pushed to completion, altough there isn’t anything especially bad about this album, It still didn’t live up to my personal hopes and expectations.
But if you like the distinct Dinosaur Jr. sound with feedback-drenched but melodic guitars and trailing vocals, on that point I bet on sky does not disappoint. For better or worse, it sounds just the way we remember after ten albums. Guitar god J Mascis gets with silvery hair for every year that passes more and more like the rock universe answer to Gandalf. The guitar parts in “Pierce the Morning Rain” Will have your mind astounded from pure technical brilliance. And as all recent Dinosaur Jr. albums lo-fi bassist Lou Barlow gets a couple of his songs included to the roster (“Rude” and “Recognition”) and just as on “Beyond” and “Farm” these are obvious highlights.
In 1985 Dinosaur Jr. released their debut album. Now twenty-seven years later, they almost sound identical and J Mascis still sings more or less about the same subjects. The only difference is that the cover art has become much happier.
